Help Installing 14-50 Nema in Condo

iffatall · Dec 10, 2013

I live in a rental apartment in a condo in California that has four apartments in total. Apparently, the condos in the community were build a long time ago, and so the apartments only have 60 Amp lines each. In total, the condo has five 60 Amp lines, one of which is used for lighting common areas, etc. There are no spare circuit breakers available. The region is served by PG&E.

Given the above scenario, what are my options to be able to get a 14-50 Nema outlet installed in my parking spot which is about 40' away from the panels? I spoke with two electricians, one of who suggested to get a line from the common panel, and gave a quote of $2500; and the other said it cannot be done at all.

(I have already spoken with my landlord, who is willing to help in any way he can, but not financially, and I do not wish to spend $2500 for the installation in a rental apartment. Also, my landlord said getting permission from the community HOA should not be an issue, as long as we can tell them what specifically we want to get done. So it all comes down to - what are my options (other than moving)?)

I would greatly appreciate ANY suggestions or advice.

Thanks.

Tommy · Dec 10, 2013

iffatall said:
I live in a rental apartment in a condo in California that has four apartments in total. Apparently, the condos in the community were build a long time ago, and so the apartments only have 60 Amp lines each. In total, the condo has five 60 Amp lines, one of which is used for lighting common areas, etc. There are no spare circuit breakers available. The region is served by PG&E.

Given the above scenario, what are my options to be able to get a 14-50 Nema outlet installed in my parking spot which is about 40' away from the panels? I spoke with two electricians, one of who suggested to get a line from the common panel, and gave a quote of $2500; and the other said it cannot be done at all.

(I have already spoken with my landlord, who is willing to help in any way he can, but not financially, and I do not wish to spend $2500 for the installation in a rental apartment. Also, my landlord said getting permission from the community HOA should not be an issue, as long as we can tell them what specifically we want to get done. So it all comes down to - what are my options (other than moving)?)

I would greatly appreciate ANY suggestions or advice.

Thanks.

There is a device on the market EV Charger Powershare Electric Vehicle Charging Station | EVSE LLC that wires into your existing panel and per the website "shares the existing 220 volt wiring and the 40 amp breaker dedicated to an existing appliance. When a vehicle has been plugged‐in for charging, should an alternate source – like a clothes dryer or stove – be turned on the Appliance Powershare senses the power draw to the appliance. It automatically reduces power to the charger, or completely shuts off the charger. When the stove or dryer is turned off, charging resumes. "

I think this device would fit your needs perfectly; a lower breaker rating (30) would also probably work as well assuming you have 220v.

Lloyd · Dec 10, 2013

You could install a 5-20 plug. It would give you about 60 miles per day of charging. Installation would be less, and more compatible with the availability of power in the existing panel.

Tell the electrician that it is for a table saw. I bet your quote will be less.!

iffatall · Dec 10, 2013

That sounds perfect! Thanks a lot, Tommy for giving me a ray of hope

. This looks like it perfectly fits my requirement/situation.

I will do some research on this, and post here whatever I find. By the way, do you have any idea about how much the Powershare equipment could cost? Also, do you (or anyone else) know the logistics of getting it installed? Do they provide the installation service, or do I have to buy the box, and hire an electrician independently, or will pointing this option out to any electrician would help?

- - - Updated - - -

Lloyd said:
You could install a 5-20 plug. It would give you about 60 miles per day of charging. Installation would be less, and more compatible with the availability of power in the existing panel.

Tell the electrician that is is for a table saw. I bet your quote will be less.!

Thanks, Lloyd, for the idea. I did consider this option (although I didn't know the trick to not mention car charging), but I just feel like it is not worth it. I only live 15 mins away from a Supercharger. So I thought I would only install the charger if I can have the overnight full charge option.

Tommy · Dec 10, 2013

@ifatall, no idea on the cost; the main advantage of the device is it allows ev charging to happen without having to do a panel retrofit or upgrade of wiring (which can be cost prohibited or not even possible). If over your budget, @Lloyd has an elegant solution to get your car charged.

Lloyd · Dec 10, 2013

Might be worth it for you to get that much every day at home, then trip to the SC when you need additional. You might find that the 5-20 will give you enough on most days depending on your commute.

iffatall · Dec 10, 2013

Tommy said:
@ifatall, no idea on the cost; the main advantage of the device is it allows ev charging to happen without having to do a panel retrofit or upgrade of wiring (which can be cost prohibited or not even possible). If over your budget, @Lloyd has an elegant solution to get your car charged.

Lloyd said:
Might be worth it for you to get that much every day at home, then trip to the SC when you need additional. You might find that the 5-20 will give you enough on most days depending on your commute.

Thanks guys, I will try to find out how much it would cost; and also think about the 5-20 option.

iffatall · Dec 11, 2013

Tommy said:
@ifatall, no idea on the cost; the main advantage of the device is it allows ev charging to happen without having to do a panel retrofit or upgrade of wiring (which can be cost prohibited or not even possible). If over your budget, @Lloyd has an elegant solution to get your car charged.

Lloyd said:
Might be worth it for you to get that much every day at home, then trip to the SC when you need additional. You might find that the 5-20 will give you enough on most days depending on your commute.

Thanks guys. I will try to find out how much the Powershare option would cost, and will consider the 5-20 option if the former turns out to be too expensive.

M67v · Sep 28, 2014

I want to know too.

miimura · Sep 28, 2014

When someone tells me something is not possible, I always try to find out what the limit is. When they say no to the NEMA 14-50 (240V 50A), ask "what is the largest circuit that can be installed here?". The two smaller 240V outlets are 14-30 (240V 30A) and 6-20 (240V 20A). A 6-20 is not easy to use with the UMC, but it is possible with a custom adapter and you could also use one of the small Clipper Creek J1772 EVSEs. The 5-20 mentioned above is 120V 20A.

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Help Installing 14-50 Nema in Condo

iffatall

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iffatall

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Tommy

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iffatall

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M67v

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